1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electronic still camera. More precisely, the invention relates to an apparatus for searching a recording medium of an electronic still camera for a vacant track (i.e., empty track) upon recording of a picture.
2. Description of Related Art
In a known electronic still camera, a magnetic disc is used as a recording medium. Generally speaking, the magnetic disc has 50 recording tracks. Upon taking a picture, video signals, etc., are recorded on vacant tracks, the location of which has been determined in advance and stored in a memory. The searching operation for a vacant track is accomplished, for example, by a pre-scanning operation which is effected when the magnetic disc is mounted to the electronic still camera and a desired recording mode is set. Namely, when the recording mode is selected, the recording state (i.e. absence or presence of recording data) of all of the 50 tracks (i.e., first through fiftieth tracks) is successively checked before the video signals, etc., can be recorded. The signals are recorded on a track having the lowest track number, the recording tracks being numbered from the innermost track to the outermost track or vice versa. In another searching system in which pre-scanning is not carried out, when a shutter button is depressed (shutter switch is turned ON), the recording state of the recording track closest to a magnetic head at that moment is first checked. Thereafter, the recording tracks subsequent thereto are successively checked, so that the video signals, etc., can be recorded on a first available vacant track.
In a known search system using the pre-scanning operation, it is necessary to scan all the recording tracks to locate a vacant track. Accordingly, it usually takes a long time to take a picture after the recording mode is set. In the other known search system, in which a pre-scanning operation is not used, the camera is prepared to take a picture immediately after the recording mode is set. However, the recording state of the recording track on which the magnetic head is positioned upon selection of the recording mode must be detected for each photographing operation. If the recording track has data recorded thereon, the magnetic head is then moved to a subsequent recording track to detect the recording state thereof. The detection is continued until a vacant recording track is found. This results in a limited speed for continuous shots.